September 30th marks National Truth & Reconciliation Day and Orange Shirt Day in Canada. A day to recognize the harm done to generations of Indigenous by the Indian Residential Schools. The date is significant because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their homes to residential schools.
We honour and commemorate the murdered and missing children, the survivors and their families for the past and present trauma and pain endured as a result of the residential school system. It's a day to listen, learn and create space for the Indigenous community to tell their stories, to affirm our commitment that Every Child Matters and take action to right the injustices that they continue to face.
While wearing our orange shirts to honour the day, we know that is not enough. Canada’s Indian Residential School system will forever remain one of this country’s most shameful legacies. These church-run, government-funded institutions took Indigenous children against their will and subjected them to abuse, neglect, and dangerous living conditions in the name of assimilation into white European culture and religion. This cultural genocide spanned more than a century. The horrors of the residential schools can never be forgotten. We must advocate not only today, but every day for truth and reconciliation.
On September 30th, we will be donating 15% of in-store and online sales to The Native Women's Association of Canada, an organization dedicated to representing the political voices of Indigenous women, girls and gender-diverse people in Canada. Click here to learn more about the NWAC.
As part of a growing Indigenous Rights movement, Indigenous communities have demanded justice from Canada. This led to the 2008 creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearing testimony from residential schools Survivors within the Indigenous, Métis, and Inuit communities.
Click here for the Truth and Reconciliation Canada Commisson's 94 Calls to Action for the Canadian government to right such horrifying wrongs and begin to dismantle the systemic racism devastating Indigenous Peoples in Canada.
Miigwech! Thank you for your support!